Eric Dier is confident he can handle everything the Premier League can throw at him after facing the fearsome hostility of a Lisbon derby.

Dier has made a confident start to life at Tottenham but he tasted the bitter side of the English game last week when his mistake allowed Newcastle to equalise at White Hart Lane just seven seconds into the second half.

Newcastle went on to complete their first away win in the League since March 1 but the 20-year-old appears more than capable of bouncing back, starting at Aston Villa on Sunday. Besides, he was playing at right-back when his best position is in the centre.

Five things we learnt at Tottenham v Brighton

Five things we learnt at Tottenham v Brighton

1/5
Soldado can still carve out a future at White Hart Lane

While his haircut was questionable, Soldado underlined his technical ability linking midfield with attack and was Spurs’ best creative outlet in the final third – laying on an inch-perfect pass for Lamela’s opener. He has scored just 13 goals since arriving at the Lane, and again his shooting was wayward on Wednesday, but he could find a role for himself behind a leading forward. Against Besiktas, Manchester City and Forest he led the line and failed as an out-and-out frontman.

2/5
Federico Fazio has a lot to prove before Poch risks him in the league again…

The Argentine moved from Sevilla for £8million but is yet to justify that price-tag. Dismissed on his only Premier League start, Fazio hardly looks to be an improvement on Michael Dawson. On Wednesday night against Brighton he proved to be a liability once more when, with Spurs leading 1-0, he was lucky to escape punishment for what looked a trip on Brighton’s LuaLua inside the box. He was later booked for a reckless challenge on the same opponent.

3/5
If Pochettino wants width, his players should use it

In the build-up to Wednesday’s game Mauricio Pochettino blamed Spurs’ poor form on the small White Hart Lane pitch, but Andros Townsend wasn’t using all the wide space available to him. With Brighton camped back in their own box, the England man too often turned in and resorted to wild long shots when a wall of orange Brighton shirts prevented him advancing. He had more success when he did use the flanks, and Kane benefitted when Townsend got away down the inside left channel and cut the ball back for the second.

4/5
Forget knocking on the manager's door, Kane should be hammering it down

Harry Kane should be considered as well as Emmanuel Adebayor in the Premier League, rather than instead of him. Kane has failed to score when playing as a lone striker this season, drawing a blank against Partizan Belgrade in the Europa League. But goals against Besiktas, Asteras, Nottingham Forest and now Brighton all came when the 21-year-old was playing behind either Adebayor or Roberto Soldado. Pochettino can expect a visit, and the Argentine should consider incorporating Kane alongside another forward man.

5/5
Clattenburg isn’t afraid of the main stage

After a few controversial calls in Saturday’s 2-2 draw between West Brom and Crystal Palace, Clattenburg was already in the spotlight at the weekend. All that came before revelations this week he breached Premier League protocol by leaving The Hawthorns alone to watch an Ed Sheeran gig in Newcastle. As if all that attention wasn’t enough, the referee stole the limelight once more at White Hart Lane, denying Brighton a clear cut penalty when LuaLua was felled, while Naughton's handball also went unpunished. The visitors will rightly feel hard done by as controversy continues to follow Clattenburg around.

Dier played for Sporting Lisbon against their neighbours Benfica - one of European football’s fiercest rivalries - before joining Spurs last summer.

It would be an eye-opener for any young player and after that, everything else should be relatively plain sailing.

“Playing in those games put me in good stead for any game, so they were good for me,” he told Standard Sport.

“It’s just incredibly hostile. The fans are very close to the pitch, like in England, and there is a lot of hatred between the sets of fans.

“You go there, it’s a big stadium and the whole environment is very hostile. In Portugal, I was lucky to play in big games like Sporting v Benfica and Sporting v Porto, and I’ve been able to bring those experiences with me to England. To get a chance to do that at such a young age was important.

“Because it’s my first year in English football and I’m young, I didn’t expect to get off to the start I have here and I’m happy to have played so many games. I really didn’t know what to expect.

“I’ve made mistakes and learned a lot in such a short period of time, playing Liverpool and Manchester City. I’ve learned something from every game.”

Dier is part of a young English crop of players who Spurs hope will form the backbone of the first team for many years to come.

While none has yet established himself as an indispensable member of Mauricio Pochettino’s starting XI, there are some encouraging signs.

Ryan Mason is now first choice in central midfield, while Harry Kane has seven goals this season and is making a compelling case to be Pochettino’s first choice for Premier League matches.

Winger Andros Townsend is a senior England international and Danny Rose is now the No1 left-back for Tottenham. He would have earned a full England cap earlier in the season had it not been for injury.

Dier said: “There are lots of young players at Tottenham, of all nationalities, but there are plenty of young, ambitious English players here and we all want to do well.

“I knew Harry Kane and Tom Carroll [who is on loan at Swansea] from the England Under-21 set-up. Harry is doing what he’s meant to do, which is score goals. He seems to be doing it every time he has played and that is the most important thing for a striker.”

Kyle Naughton’s return to fitness means Dier will have competition for the right-back spot on Sunday. Kyle Walker is also making good progress as he targets a first-team return.

The recovery of those two players means Dier is again likely to compete for a role in central defence, where he appears happier.

He insists, however, that he is just as happy on the flank.

Dier added: “They liked the full-backs to get forward as much as possible in Portugal, so it’s something I know about. I’m known as a centre-back but I have played at right-back before, for Sporting.”